Exploring the mountains in search of bears

This graceful-looking young lady is Wu Yu-hui. As a member of the Formosan Black Bear Research Team, she has been studying bears in the virgin forests of Taiwan's Central Mountain Range for three years. Wu majored in French in school, so she finds it incredible that she became interested in Formosan black bears.

Her fascination began when she was a senior in college. Because she had finished almost all her courses, she often found herself at loose ends. Thinking that she should find something to do and knowing that she liked to climb mountains, she recommended herself to "Mother Bear" Huang Mei-hsiu, head of the Formosan Black Bear Research Team.

Wu admitted that before she joined the team, she had no interest in animals. But after chasing bears for a few months in the mountains, she began to like them. "They always filled me with wonder whenever I saw them." Wu could not hide her excitement when she talked about the extraordinary animals, so she decided to go to graduate school and pursue further studies on the black bears. After four months of diligent study, she passed the entrance exam to the Institute of Natural Resources at National Dong Hwa University in eastern Taiwan. The Formosan black bear became the topic of her thesis.

Marked by the V-shaped splotch of white fur on its chest, the Formosan black bear is a popular animal in Taiwan. In a poll conducted by the Taipei Zoo, the black bear was elected with over 160,000 votes as the most representative indigenous Taiwanese animal. In 2001, the black bear was chosen as the mascot for the 34th Baseball World Cup held in Taiwan. Despite this popularity, however, people do not know much about the Formosan black bear or about its life in the wilderness. Consequently, the information collected by Huang Mei-hsiu, Wu Yu-hui, and other researchers in the Tafen mountain area in the Yushan National Park is especially precious.

"Huang and Wu are not only courageous, they are also as competent as mountain rangers when it comes to working outdoors independently," Chen Lung-sheng, secretary of the Yushan National Park Management Office, recounted the compliment made by wildlife photographer Chung Jung-feng.

The research base that Huang and Wu work from is located in a remote area in Tafen. In order to reach the base, Huang and Wu have to trek for three days while carrying gear that weighs from 15 to 30 kilograms [33-66 lbs]. Setting out from their starting point on the Walami Trail, they have to travel over mountains and valleys, pass cave-ins, and cross several dilapidated suspension bridges. In order to catch bears, they once stayed in the mountains for 55 days. On another occasion, they even encountered a typhoon.

"We have to spend at least 10 days per month in the mountains," observed Wu. "We set up bear traps, anesthetize the bears we catch, put radio collars on their necks, and weigh and examine them. We also have to spend 24 hours a day for three consecutive days receiving signals from the radio collars. During the three days, we have to take turns sleeping. Once the bears we are tracking cross the crest line, we have to take down our tents, put on our backpacks, and start looking for them all over again." Wu also mentioned two additional tasks: collecting bear dung and setting traps to get hair samples.

The V-shaped splotch of white fur

There are seven species of bears in the world: polar bears, brown bears, American black bears, Asiatic black bears, Malayan sun bears, sloth bears, and spectacled bears (some zoologists classify pandas as bears). Formosan black bears are the smallest subspecies of Asiatic black bears and are the only kind of bears native to Taiwan. Asiatic black bears used to be widely distributed in Asia, their tracks having been found in Japan, China, Afghanistan, and Pakistan.

When speaking of Formosan black bears, it is natural for people to think of the crescent moon-shaped (or V-shaped) splotch of white fur on the animals' chests. Many people have the misconception that the particular patch of white fur is a characteristic unique to Formosan black bears. Actually, it is a common trait among all Asiatic black bears. That is why Asiatic black bears are also called "moon bears."

Formosan black bears have another name: "dog bears." According to Lin Yuan-yuan, a mountain ranger who works for the Yushan National Park Management Office, the bears got this name because the sounds they make when frightened resemble dogs' barks. Besides, the shapes of their noses are also similar to those of dogs.

During the past three years, the Formosan Black Bear Research Team caught 15 bears. All the bears, except for a bear cub, were fitted with radio collars. According to findings from radio tracking, Formosan black bears move not only in the daytime but also at night. They usually move in the daytime during spring and summer, but in the fall and winter they extend their activity time to 9 or 10 p.m. or even later. The black bears are often seen in primitive broadleaf forests or mixed forests consisting mostly of broadleaf trees at altitudes of 1,200 to 1,800 meters [3,937-5,906 ft].

The research team also found that, like Asiatic black bears inhabiting southern China, Formosan black bears do not hibernate in the winter. They might, however, move to lower elevations in search of food. In mid-January 2000, the team even detected traces of black bears at the entrance of the Walami Trail, an altitude of 600 meters. News reports then warned tourists to look out for bears in that area.

An analysis of black bear excrement found that the bears feed on different kinds of food in different seasons. In spring, they eat leaves and roots. In summer, they subsist on the fruits of Machilus trees, while in fall and winter their diet consists of nuts belonging to the Fagaceae family. Blue Japanese oaks and devil tanoaks, both of the Fagaceae family, are widely distributed in the Tafen mountain area; consequently, black bears frequent that area in fall and winter. Many external factors, however, influence the black bears' behavior. In 2001, for example, no bears were seen in the Tafen mountain area even though the area's blue Japanese oaks and devil tanoaks were loaded with fruit. Wu surmised that maybe in other areas, the blue Japanese oaks and devil tanoaks also yielded plenty of nuts, thus attracting bears to those areas. Another possibility, she believed, was that the bears were frightened away from Tafen by the local construction of a mountain cabin and a suspension bridge.

Learning from the aborigines

The aborigines play an important role in the research on Formosa black bears. Wu talked gratefully and respectfully of Lin Yuan-yuan, a member of the Bunun tribe. "Hsiu-mei and I have learned so much from Mr. Lin. Were it not for his help, we might not have been able to carry out our research work."

In order to draw on the wildlife experiences of aborigines who know the mountains and forests well, Huang and her team members spent two years visiting 13 aboriginal tribes in the vicinity of the Yushan National Park. They interviewed more than 90 aboriginal hunters, mostly members of the Bunun tribe.

The aboriginal hunters conveyed some amazing things about the bears. A tribal chief told Lin that boars are considered the mortal enemies of black bears. Even if a boar were to fall into a trap, a black bear would still not go near it. The hunters also said that bears' gall bladders contract or expand according to the phase of the moon. Their gall bladders are at their largest when the moon is full and at their smallest when the moon is a thin crescent.

Even though some of the aborigines' statements may seem scientifically unfounded, a few of them do tally with observations noted by researchers. For example, aborigines and scientists agree that black bears have very small stomachs, about the size of a human palm. Their intestines are short too, making them prone to vomit when their stomachs are full. When the bears are unable to finish their food, they will rest near the food and continue eating after they wake up. Their habit of throwing up while walking can be seen from the vomit found near some mountain cabins or traps.

Among all the bears caught by the research team, the biggest was a male bear called "Bilis." It weighed 110 kilograms [243 lbs]. According to descriptions by some hunters, male bears can weigh over 200 kilograms [441 lbs] while female bears usually weigh less than 150 kilograms [331 lbs].

Just as Bunun people categorize other wild animals like goats and boars, they also classify black bears into two groups: big ones and small ones. The big ones may weigh over 100 kilograms [220 lb] and have large V-shaped splotches of white fur on their chests. They usually travel alone. The small ones weigh under 60 kilograms [132 lbs]. The Y-shaped patch of white fur on their chests is small and yellowish. Some may not even have any white fur on their chests. They are also more aggressive and sometimes hang around in groups.

Formosan black bears are omnivorous. All aboriginal hunters interviewed by the research team said that bears often eat or drag away animals caught in traps. Sometimes they even ransack workers' huts or mountain cabins for food. Black bears are also said to have a sweet tooth; honeycombs are allegedly their favorite desserts. Some hunters said that they have seen the creatures raiding honeycombs. Because Eastern honeybees usually build their nests in holes in tree trunks, black bears rock the trees, gnaw away wood blocking the holes, stick their front paws into the trees, and scoop out the honeycombs. Some bears even eat wasp hives built on treetops. These bears take action at night when wasps are less active and climb up the trees to knock down the hives before eating the pupas inside.

Formosan black bears are mainly solitary except when mating or nursing. They have no fixed resting places; they usually sleep wherever their feet take them. They like to rest by rock walls, in holes in trees, or in stone caves. Sometimes they use tree branches or giant miscanthus grass to build nests on the ground. Other times, they climb up trees, build nests out of bent branches, and rest in the trees. Lin Yuan-yuan mentioned that black bears often hang around crest lines or precipices where animals like to show up. The bears wait to prey on the animals that pass by.

Do they also attack human beings in the same way? Lin doesn't think so. He said that black bears have a keen sense of smell and good eyesight. Once bears sense human beings coming toward them, they quickly slip away. Lin said he once almost "bumped into" a bear at a bend in a mountain path. He immediately took out an aerosol defense spray and sprayed it into the face of the bear. Unfortunately, a puff of wind blew the spray back onto him. He was so badly choked that he became terribly dizzy. The bear, scared just as much, immediately turned and fled for its life.

A mysterious loner

Black bears usually move in remote areas that are inaccessible to humans. Even Lin, who spends a lot of time in the mountains, said that he has never come across any bear carcasses in the wilderness. Wu agreed that the chance of running into a bear was extremely slim. She saw only one during the entire time she was in the mountains. Still, black bears have broken into the mountain cabin in Tafen where scientists usually stay while doing research. The bears were lured to the cabin because it was littered with food and garbage left behind by other mountaineers and tourists.

Wu said that in order to avoid attracting black bears, tourists should put garbage, food, and clothes stained with food away from their tents. It would also be better, she said, not to bring cans of sardines or other kinds of food that emit strong smells.

If you do run into a bear, remember not to run. Try to back away from it slowly; otherwise you might arouse its instinct to attack. "In fact, bears are not that terrible. We are afraid of bears, but they are even more afraid of us," Wu emphasized.

The Formosan Black Bear Research Team studies this fear and other aspects of the human-bear relationship. The Yushan National Park used to be a Bunun hunting area, where the Bununs held complicated ceremonies and observed many taboos when they hunted bears. These ceremonies showed respect and fear for the beast. Because of these views, the Bunun people hold mixed feelings toward tribesmen who capture bears. On the one hand, they see them as heroes; on the other hand, they regard them as unlucky.

Unlike other animals, the Formosan black bear holds a unique place in the Bununs' hearts. Legend has it that a Bunun ancestor once turned into a black bear. Therefore, killing bears is like manslaughter for the Bununs.

Although the Bununs do not prohibit bear hunting, traditional hunting practices require hunters to chant an incantation to the bear before shooting it. The chant roughly means, "I'm sorry, but I'm going to shoot at you..." Some people still regard hunting bears as unlucky, though. "When a bullet hits a bear," a hunter said, "the bear will keep wailing in pain, as if it were crying. Bad things will happen to the hunter's family or the hunter himself... Someone might possibly die."

According to Bunun tradition, bear hunting is forbidden during certain times. For example, if bears are hunted down during the period when millet is being sown to the time it is fully grown, all the millet grains will turn black, as if they had been seared.

Other taboos regarding bear hunting are included in the following statements: "Those who hunt down bears should rest for two days; the others in the tribe should also rest for one day during which time they cannot work in the fields." "When those who hunt down bears go to storerooms to get sacks of millet, they cannot carry them by hand but have to move them with sticks." "When the millet is being harvested, those who hunt down bears must walk behind the others." "Those who have carelessly hunted down bears cannot attend sacrificial ceremonies, and their names cannot appear in any name lists."

Wu said that she had heard before that misfortune really befell the hunters who did not observe the traditional ceremonies and taboos. Either the financial situation of the hunter's family took a bad turn, or the hunters died a miserable death. Because of the fearful consequences, these complicated ceremonies and taboos have succeeded in the past in preventing black bears from being killed indiscriminately.

Today's young hunters, however, no longer observe these ceremonies and taboos. Since the Formosan black bear is listed as a protected wildlife species in Taiwan, hunters tend to eat the bears caught illegally. Hunters might also secretly sell them to shops that sell mountain delicacies.

On the verge of extinction

Taiwan's Wildlife Conservation Law strictly prohibits hunting and selling Formosan black bears, but hunters continue to stalk the bears for their gall bladders and paws. The gall bladders are believed to have special curative powers while the paws are considered rare delicacies.

According to statistics, 46.7 percent of all black bears were caught in traps set by hunters. This figure does not even include those killed by hunters. Among the 15 bears once caught by the Formosan Black Bear Research Team, two female bears had broken limbs and five male bears suffered injuries of varying degrees.

The research team conjectured that the bears with broken legs likely traveled outside the Yushan National Park and fell into traps. The Formosan black bear is the biggest mammal on Taiwan, and large-sized mammals usually require a lot of space to move around. The research team once followed the path of a female bear through radio tracking and found that her footsteps covered 50 square kilometers. Under normal conditions, male bears should travel over an even wider area.

Wang Ying, a professor who teaches at the Department of Biology at National Taiwan Normal University, cited the fragmentation of habitat as another problem threatening the existence of black bears. Mountainous areas below 2,500 meters [8,202 ft] in western Taiwan have all been developed, and roads built into the mountains have allowed tourists and hunters to enter formerly untamed areas. This kind of "traffic development" has exacerbated the hunting problem and has also divided spacious wildlife habitats into small areas. Black bears have been forced to eke out a living in these fragmented areas, with the food scarcity badly affecting reproduction and the survival rate of bear cubs.

No one knows for sure how many Formosan black bears still exist in the wild. According to Lin's observation, "Only about 20 bears still live in the Tafen mountain area." It looks as if the future of the Formosan black bear--a loner in the forest--is far from promising.